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Where are you at on your #NanoWrimo #writing?

nanowrimo recordMy last post was an announcement of my Nanowrimo endeavour.

I’m sorry I’ve rather disappeared from the blogiverse in the past 15 days, but a few things keep pulling me in all sorts of directions.

I had a great first week, lost a little steam in the second, but have broken 31k today. The story is humming along, even though I had to do a bit of restructuring two days ago.

Virtual hugs to everyone on this Nano journey with me–please drop word counts in the comments if you like. I need the inspiration!

How about you? How’s your Nanowrimo, in case you’re taking part? If you’re not, what have you been up to? What advice do you have for a writer hung over with her story? More than sharing my rather unremarkable journey, I’m keen to know about yours!

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Damyanti Biswas

Damyanti Biswas is the author of You Beneath Your Skin and numerous short stories that have been published in magazines and anthologies in the US, the UK, and Asia. She has been shortlisted for Best Small Fictions and Bath Novel Awards and is co-editor of the Forge Literary Magazine. Her literary crime thriller series, the Blue Mumbai, is represented by Lucienne Diver from The Knight Agency. Both The Blue Bar and The Blue Monsoon were published in 2023.

I appreciate comments, and I always visit back. If you're having trouble commenting, let me know via the contact form, or tweet me up @damyantig !

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58 Comments

  • M. C. Frye says:

    I hope everyone had a good NaNo this year! I’m sorting out what to do next and thinking about my goals for next year. I love the community and camaraderie of NaNoWriMo. I’d like to find year-round writing groups with similar ethos and involvement.

  • Mark Murata says:

    I sent a fantasy manuscript in to a major publishing house in mid-November. That’s the usual advice–get your manuscript in before they get deluged by nanowrimo stuff. The next window is sometime in January, after the holidays. Editors take time off, too.

  • Instead of doing NanoWrimo this year, I decided to do a 6 month novel writing plan. To me six months still allows you to have a firm deadline, but gives enough time to edit and reshape the novel during the process. I still would like the support and encouragement of a whole community, though, which NanoWrimo offers, so I’m on the lookout for others doing similar projects.

    Happy writing!

    Rebekah

  • I elected not to do Nano this time, Damyanti. I can see the merits of it for some (if not many or most) writers, but, I think for my life, commitments, and writing style and routine, I just cannot cram 50K (or more) words into the month. I don’t want to write a novel, per se, just to have written a novel. I guess that’s not a great explanation, but, then again, I don’t owe anyone an explanation! I definitely think good ideas, outlines, and lines, grafs, or even chapters can come out of NaNoWriMo.
    As to if you’re still having a writer’s blockage of sorts, I would just say that you’ve come so far this November, toward writing a Nano novel, so why stop now. Push on through and get it done, otherwise you might (I’m not you, of course, so I can’t say for sure!) feel like you’ve failed when you really haven’t. If nothing else, it’s a first draft and springboard onto later drafts, right? Wishing you continued successes!

  • I signed up, but my word count is at absolute Zero. I had an idea and when I got into a quick outline for it and going ahead, I wrote a page of the outline and blanked. I had no idea where to take it from there and all these clusters of crap went through my head. And then I remembered the dozen or more short stories I’d started and decided that I would dedicate my time to getting my head straight and trying to come up with a health, art, and writing ritual that would be more beneficial than super stressful. I’ll try to keep in mind next year–if i’d remembered November was around the corner, I would’ve prepared sooner and not tried to start three days in! Then I had trainings to finish and crazy schedules crop up out of nowhere–I was derailed before I’d even started the engine.

    Anyhoo, I hope you keep it up and let it flow. Virtual hugs and all the best.

  • J.R.Bee says:

    Great going, I didn’t WriMo, and I’m glad because I ended up moving, and that would have sunk me before I started. I have started organising my world building notes better though.

  • Inspirational! I love reading your progress – I just returned from Bali and the Ubud Writer’s Festival – inspired and my first draft sketched out. I just came across NanoWriMo and am starting today filling in the scenes with this discipIine of a daily word count. Exciting.

  • cathum says:

    Nicely done. I’d love to take part, but November is my busiest month. So, I’ve just been approached with a proposal for December that I hope will achieve similar results…more news to follow shortly…

  • dgkaye says:

    Good luck D! I admire all who are working diligently trying to get that word count down in 30 days! Thanks for still managing to pop by. 🙂

  • Sonya Rhen says:

    Congratulations! Keep pushing on. I miss doing NaNo this year, so I’m happy to cheer you on. I know you can do it. The second and third week usually seem the hardest. Once you get past that hurdle, it’s just a race to the end.

  • cleemckenzie says:

    31K is quite an accomplishment! Great to hear from you. Now back to NaNo. Good luck.

  • ericlahti says:

    If it’s any consolation, so far this month I’ve written a whopping 541 words. Thankfully, I’m not doing NaNoWriMo; I spent most of the month editing and getting a book out to beta readers. Keep at it! It looks like you’re doing great!

  • miladyronel says:

    Take a day and just do something else than write. I know it sounds insane, but it works. Giving your mind time to just “breathe”, will help you to get back at it with renewed energy. Not knowing what my word count was for two weeks (just writing by hand, though that wasn’t my choice) has me up to 68k. I know you can do it 🙂 Just keep writing!

  • Wishing you the best! 🙂

  • 50,000 words / 30 days=1,667 per day. Today is the 19th so… I would need 31,000 and I’m nowhere near … this can be done? ;). I just use November to “do better”…YOU guys are MY inspiration…I’m in awe of Damyanti and all of you!

  • aj vosse says:

    Keep going!! Remember… it must not become a chore… enjoy!! 😉

  • Good news, you have the soul of a true writer.

  • I wish all you brave NaNoWriMo writers best of luck, I couldn’t do it. 31k is BRILLIANT.

  • Looks like you’re doing great. Crack on and conquer!

  • Dan Antion says:

    I’m not participating, but you know that I’m cheering you and the other on from a distance!

  • annologist says:

    Well done Damyanti, keep going – I’m right with you! xxx

  • Shivesh says:

    Good going Damyanti.
    I have been more or less regular as a reader on your blog. 31K is an exciting number. Keep doing the good work, keep inspiring.
    Because of my lazy attitude in my free as well as busy days – I am nowhere in the run of Nano. In fact, I didn’t even started. I feel December would be my Nano month.
    The other reason of commenting here apart from wishing you good luck is that I want an inspiration to write regularly.
    Okay, keep us posted on your progress if you find time and good luck!

  • pjlazos says:

    That’s terrific! Keep going!! ???I’m only just above 17k. Work and life have intervened but my real goal – to write everyday – has been accomplished.

  • tric says:

    I think it’s safe to say mine has been anything but successful. Congratulations you are doing really well. Keep it up.

  • Jemima Pett says:

    Keep up the good work, Damyanti – just one foot in front of another…
    Lots of love
    Jemima

  • hilarymb says:

    Hi Damyanti – you’re on your way … and that’s great you’re keeping track and inspiring yourself and others through thick and thin … I’m not doing it – other things going on … but good on you – and here’s to the finish … cheers Hilary

  • My nano (should that be no no? ) started as unofficial, ends up as a children’s story which is, lexpect, not allowed anyway. Well done you. Sounds despondent, but if treated as a learning curve, maybe I’ll get away with it.

  • Well done everyone, you are doing great work! I am just short of 29,000 and feel that I am plodding along steadily. I am writing book #5 in a series that was originally planned to be one book, so yeah, it has become rather a big part of my life! See you all at the finish line.

  • Fantastic work! Impressed that you took time out to restructure. Keep going & you’ll get there. And if you’re floundering, go for a walk to clear your head.

    • I find that changing the outline and restructuring gets my writing unclogged, so I’m doing it (against all first draft advice!) Thanks for the advice and for stopping by!

  • kalanleitch says:

    Hi! Thanks for following my blog, “Words by K. Alan.” I’m really encouraged to see a fellow writer actively inviting comments; when I started here, I had imagined that we would be exchanging strategies and techniques, but I can’t seem to get anyone over there to do much more than hit “like.”

    I’m writing off my NANO project as a learning curve. I will finish it, don’t get me wrong, but I have resigned myself to ending with an unmarketable project. There are two main reasons for this: one is an unfamiliar genre (a murder mystery, to align with the MWA competition), and the other is my first experiment with an unreliable narrator. Lesson learned: when writing under a deadline, do not push too far out of comfort zones!

    I have topped 29,000 words but three of those chapters are actually written in the wrong perspective (third-person instead of first). I am also stuck on some character motivation: basically, my protagonist has annoyed a cop so many times, that it is getting too hard to believe she is not in jail. Any suggestions?

    • I’m afraid I’m guilty of the Likes these days. With everything I need to juggle, commenting becomes hard. Thankyou so much for taking the time to comment here: I’m planning on catching up on my blog business post November.

      Without knowing your novel at all, maybe the cop has a crush/ liking for her for some reason etc and keeps letting the protagonist off?

      I’ve been cutting and rewriting a bit as I write because that way it keeps me excited about the story but maybe a few notes on POV changes to be dealt with during the rewrites works as well?

      • kalanleitch says:

        Good suggestions…I think that the (older) cop having history with her family fits in well with her being an unreliable narrator. You might have solved it!

        • Damyanti Biswas says:

          Really? That’s fab, and if it helps the story, that just made my day!

          Keep us all updated on how it goes!

  • jazzfeathers says:

    You are having a fantastic NaNo, D!! Go for it!!!!!!!

    • Damyanti Biswas says:

      Thanks, Sarah. I’m doing my best, let’s hope it is good enough:)

  • I’m doing an unofficial Nano, Damyanti. I couldn’t deal with the stress, but wanted to write along. I’m at 25K. You’re doing great. It’s intense. Keep going!

    • Damyanti Biswas says:

      25k sounds pretty official to me! Great job, and thanks for stopping by to cheer me on :). I know you’ll finish the 50k on time!

  • Congratulations!! You are doing so well. Keep up the good work and extra ‘snaps’ for restructuring the story and getting on with it. Virtual hugs back to you!

    • Damyanti Biswas says:

      Thanks Nicola! After the restructuring, the story is flowing better. Crossing fingers!

      Hugs to you, hope you’re doing well.

  • C.E.Robinson says:

    Congratulations! You’re pushing ahead even though grieving the loss of your dog. So very sad! Sending good thoughts! ? Christine

  • You’re on track to finish early!

    • Damyanti Biswas says:

      I am, but I see lean days ahead when I have to do other stuff. I’m going to try pull it off no matter what, but let’s see 🙂

  • mdellert says:

    I took a big hit at the end of last week. My dog, faithful companion for 10 years and through four trips across the North American continent, passed on Saturday from pneumonia. It’s been a hard time getting back on my feet. But the getting up… Yeah. Doing it. Current wordcount: 33050, and I can still finish ahead of schedule if I just put my back into it again.

    Very proud to see where you’re at, Damyanti! Keep on trucking!

    • Damyanti Biswas says:

      Oh my God, am So sorry to hear that, Michael. Hugs.

      Good on you for pushing through this difficult time to still get work done.

      Take care of you while you write ahead.

  • suregirl69p says:

    I wish I had been able to keep up, I got sick and wasn’t able to write .I am still writing but I will not make the 30 day dead line. I am bummed out but I did give it the old collage try

    • Damyanti Biswas says:

      Health comes first!
      And I admire your commitment at plugging on.
      You might just make the word count and even if you don’t, the amount you have is still a lot of progress!

  • I didn’t take part in Nano, I just can’t write that way. Makes it feel like an assignment. But I’m glad it works for some. Part of the activity here is workshops and extra activities, and last night I went to a workshop in flash fiction, which was great.

    • mdellert says:

      It’s not for everybody, nor should it be. A writer’s method is as unique as a fingerprint. In my opinion, the only “right” way is the way that gets you through to the end. So keep doing what you’re doing! 🙂

    • Damyanti Biswas says:

      We must all do what works for us! I’m not much of a Nano person myself, this was my way of pushing myself out of my comfort zone!
      I love writing flash fiction, been a while since I wrote one of those!

  • N. E. White says:

    I just broke 10k. I didn’t get a chance to write yesterday, but I’m determined to get in another 15k before the 30th. I won’t “win”, but I’ll have a good chunk done – I hope!

    • mdellert says:

      Excellent work, N.E.! Keep up the good work! It’s not about “winning,” it’s about the journey. 😉

    • Damyanti Biswas says:

      That’s a lot done, already.
      This is my first Nano, and that’s because I never wanted to do a thing with a deadline. But now I find that a deadline spurs me on: whatever I get can be worked on to make it better.
      If you get a chunk done, that’s lots of words without having invested an extra penny 🙂